Self Care

“You cannot pour from an empty cup, you must fill your cup first.”~Unknown~

Self care is not just important, but also necessary for everyday success. Before motherhood, I didn’t truly appreciate self care. In fact, I found myself always pouring from an empty cup and not filling my own first. Giving and giving but not stopping to realize that putting myself first is okay. Then Motherhood crept into my life, and after Baby #2, I felt exhausted and flat-out numb daily because I was continuing to pour from an empty cup. I wasn’t taking care of myself as I should. My eating habits were fine, but not great, and I wasn’t consistent in my daily/long term goals. I felt like all of my habits that I had developed before pregnancy vanished.

I kept thinking to myself, “What are you doing?” Yet kept pouring from my empty cup. Then, one day in 2012, after the birth of my third daughter, I realized that I must make certain lifestyle changes in order to be successful in living my best life possible, so I did.

First, I begin every morning with meditation. I take about an hour of my mornings to meditate and focus on myself. Not the to-do lists, my children, or my husband, just me. I’ve learned that Mommy’n can take a toll on you mentally as well as physically and working on my mind is essential. It’s worked wonders! I’m able to not only focus, but my thought process throughout the day is phenomenal and I’m able to be the best woman,mother, & wife for those in my life! I know a huge part of this is because of the time I allot out of each day to focus on me. Now, you may not have an hour before heading out the door in the mornings, but even 20-30 minutes is good to jump-start YOU for the day. Just to be present with yourself and tune out the noise makes a world of difference.

Alongside self care, staying healthy is also important. I’ve always eaten pretty healthy. Growing up my Mother cooked healthy meals everyday. I can count with my fingers how often my siblings and I went out for dinner. But even if you didn’t grow up eating healthy and seeing that positive example, it’s never too late.

I like to begin every morning with some type of breakfast. Whether it be a fruit of some sort(banana, apple slices w/peanut butter,etc...), granola bars, smoothie, or a hot plate of egg whites with avocado toast. Breakfast is essential in jump-starting your day!

My mom used to make us a healthy breakfast every morning. She would fill up the breakfast table with a plethora of healthy options and then call our names to come eat. My siblings and I would race downstairs for first dibs & for a quick fuel before heading to school for the day.

Now as a Mom, I want to be that positive example for my daughters. So, I mimic her. You have to jump-start your mind, then fuel it in the morning in some sort of way.

Next, be sure to eat healthy throughout the day. Yeah, breakfast is important, but so is snacking and lunch and let’s not forget a hot dinner plate! YUM! It’s ok to snack, but remember healthy snacks, during the day. While in college, at The University of Miami, I learned a lot being a track and field athlete. But one of the key things I learned about my health is that it’s wealth and should be treated as such. Daily. When competing, of course, I had to maintain a certain weight and nourish my body with the proper nutrients needed to perform at my best, but after hanging up my track spikes and starting another chapter in my life, I kept my eating regimen from 17 years ago.

Essentially, you should eat at least 6x a day. Yes, six.

Breakfast
Snack(ex: yogurt)
Lunch
Snack(ex: healthy trail mix)
Dinner
Snack(healthy dessert, ex: banana ice cream, yogurt pots,etc...)

Remember, you are what you eat, so eat healthy, get the proper nutrients, and treat your body right!

Finally, YOU GOTTA BE CONSISTENT! In anything, if you wish to succeed, consistency is key. After running track for 14 years of my life and focusing on working hard, and being consistent it became habitual. But I was still exhausted because I neglected self-care. You can be consistent all you want, but taking care of yourself should always come first.

As I’ve matured as a woman, into motherhood, being consistent in everything is not optional. Whether it’s the simple 20-30 min. or 1 hr. of your time daily to meditate, or eating healthy,(moderate) meals throughout the day. Everything is catered around consistency and being consistent. When I fully understood the art of being consistent, I began to see drastic results in my body-from the inside out. Consistency daily simply means doing that one thing(s) regularly for self, health, or constant improvement in life. Motherhood has changed me. But I’m thankful for it because it led me back to consistency, focus, and living my best life.

“We are what we repeatedly do, excellence,therefore, is not an act, but a habit.”~ Aristotle